Brad Stevens looks like UCLA's top target, but would he leave Butler?

As of Wednesday afternoon, it appears that highly-sought-after Butler coach Brad Stevens is the number one choice of UCLA's athletic department for its open head coach spot.

That fact, in itself, is no surprise. Stevens is one of -- if not the -- best mid-major coaches out there. Marquette coach Buzz Williams, who beat Stevens in last weeks Round of 32, called him a "Hall of Fame coach," and Stevens is just 36 years old. By almost all accounts, he's the closest thing college basketball has to a prodigy coach.

Stevens has gotten the full court press before from other schools and remained in Indianapolis, but UCLA certainly would be the best program that Stevens has been approached by. He would certainly "excite the fan base" -- a quality that AD Dan Guerrero said he was looking for in UCLA's next coach. Still, at this point, there is no word that UCLA has made an offer to Stevens.

But would Stevens, who is a Midwesterner through and through, fit in Hollywood? Is he the right choice to recruit Los Angeles and return UCLA to the elite? And would he even accept an offer, if one was made?

First, let's take a look at whether things would make sense on UCLA's end.

THE FIT

There's an obvious narrative in Stevens' past that no doubt makes him a marketable candidate to UCLA fans who yearn for a return to the glory days. Stevens is an Indiana-born, Indiana-raised Hoosier through and through -- a past that coincidentally intertwines with the beginnings of John Wooden's career. Stevens has even built his teams on the principles of "The Butler Way" -- a philosophy that certainly has its roots in the Pyramid of Success. (Although, it should be noted that "The Butler Way" had been coined before Stevens became head coach.) Heck, the comparison is already a line on his Wikipedia bio.

Stevens should be considered a top-tier candidate, and getting someone like him to accept the job would definitely communicate to the college basketball world that UCLA should be a major player for years to come. I can also say that the parents of players that I've spoken with would definitely be pleased with the hire.

But what about all the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles? Stevens has never truly competed for recruits at the highest level, instead competing for mid-level recruits who will usually stay four years, giving him ample time to coach them in his complex system.

Arguably Stevens' best player in his time in Indianapolis, current Jazz forward Gordon Hayward, was just a three-star recruit from Brownsburg, Indiana whose best offer came from Purdue. His best player this season, Rotnei Clarke, is a transfer from Arkansas.

According to Rivals.com, Stevens has brought in just one four-star recruit since starting at Butler in the 2007-08 season -- class of 2012 shooting guard Kellen Dunham. During his tenure, he's also successfully recruited just two players outside of the bordering states around Indiana.

These facts don't necessarily cheapen Stevens' recruiting potential if he were to come to Westwood. Stevens' model at Butler was always to win over local recruits in the basketball hotbed of Indiana. And there's certainly reason to believe that he could do the same in Los Angeles and thrive on winning over big-time L.A. recruits.

But the point is that Stevens has never had to recruit in Los Angeles, and if you ask anyone, it's definitely a different animal than recruiting Indiana.

Still, with his credentials as a coach and the tools to recruit the best players, Stevens could thrive at UCLA. If he can get big-time, one-and-done type players to play like he wants them to and excite other young prospects to come to Westwood, then Stevens could be a huge hit.

THE SYSTEM

Stevens is a relentless statistician and strategist, and his system, on both ends is known to be quite complex. His scouting reports are rumored to be almost frighteningly detailed, and there are few coaches considered to be more well-prepared for games than Stevens.

His team's style of play, however, isn't the most exciting. Butler ranked 220th in tempo last season, according to KenPom.com -- 190 spots below UCLA. That doesn't necessarily jive with Guerrero's statement that UCLA will hire a coach that plays an exciting brand of basketball, but Stevens' teams also haven't been too shabby on the offense end, just once ranking outside the top 60 in offensive efficiency. This season, Butler averaged 70 points per game -- good for 56th-best in the nation. His offense very much reflects his analytical coaching style: it's complex, well-executed, and preys on a defense's specific weakness.

Defense and rebounding are the true calling cards of Stevens' teams at Butler, and his system will no doubt require maximum effort from his players at all times. Stevens' defenses haven't always forced many turnovers, and instead focus on forcing teams to take bad shots and then ensuring that they get the rebound. His teams rarely rank inside the top 100 in turnover percentage, yet are almost always within the top 25 in offensive rebounding percentage defense -- another example of making up for having less quick, athletic players with sound strategy.

Most of all, Stevens has always been about working with what he's got, and there's reason to believe that his system would change to reflect the strengths of his team, if he were to ever leave Butler. At UCLA, it would certainly have to be tweaked. But the only real concern with his preferred style of play would likely be getting big-time recruits to buy into playing hard on every possession. But hey, other coaches do it. So why not Stevens?

THE MONEY

Stevens is believed to currently be making $1 million at Butler, and that's a number that UCLA would no doubt pay, plus a sizeable amount more, to get him to come to Westwood.

His current contract runs through the 2021-22 season, so Butler had him locked up for quite a while following his last salary increase. But don't expect any of that to be a road block -- other than for UCLA if they were to potentially enter negotiations.

UCLA boosters and Guerrero know the importance of getting this hire right, and all signs point toward them being willing to spend enough to get Stevens to accept -- even if that number is in the couple of millions per year range.

BUT WOULD HE COME?

There's really no way to know at this point. Stevens is known for running a tight ship and keeping things close the vest. I'd imagine anyone who says they know what Stevens would do or is thinking is just guessing at this point.

But there's reason to wonder: if UCLA can't lock down Stevens, who really can? Indiana, which would be the most obvious job move for Stevens, will be coached by Tom Crean for the forseeable future. Maybe Duke would be an attractive landing point after the retirement of Mike Krzyzewski in the future, but again, it's hard to know what Stevens is thinking. It's also worth noting that Butler has gone from a Horizon League team to the Atlantic 10 to the Big East next season while Stevens has been around. Maybe he'd just like to continue building his empire. After all, he's said on many occasions that he's happy with his life in Indianapolis.

There is one insight in Stevens' feeling about the UCLA job, and it comes from a NY Times blog post in which Stevens counted UCLA as one of the elite programs in the country.

But is Stevens really interested in moving? And would UCLA be the right fit?

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